After my recent excerpt about kindness in Mexico, I’ve decided I will occasionally write about kindness encounters south of the border that impact me ~ if for nothing else, to counter the steady stream of not so kind news...
Here is kindness report #2:
This hot afternoon I was in a cafe getting a cold drink, and the man next to my table accidentally bumped into me with his chair. He immediately apologized profusely and then went back to conversing with his wife and child. A few moments later he turned and asked inquisitively where I was from and struck up a conversation. As I chatted with him and his wife, I learned they were from Guadalajara and were visiting San Miguel as tourists for a few days. But in a few weeks they were headed to Ontario, CA to go camping with extended family there. When I told him I was from LA, he joked that LA was pretty much like Mexico, to which I laughed and agreed. The conversation continued for a while about their family in the States and details about my stay in San Miguel. They asked how I was enjoying their country and sincerely welcomed me as a foreigner multiple different times, saying repeatedly that they hoped I enjoyed my stay and that I was truly welcome.
This display of unexpected kindness moved me and I could not help but think with chagrin how many times the reverse scenario happens and a kind welcome is not the first thing extended.
It again gave me hope that citizens can rally and repair and restore relationships even when governments cannot. Despair is not the right response in these increasingly bizarre times we are living in. Hope is. Kindness is. Understanding is. Connecting is. Forging solidarity with whomever comes across our path - this is a way forward out of the division that is sprouting around us.